# Is "Riprap" by Gary Snyder a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Riprap by Gary Snyder (Origin Press, 1959) is identified by: Origin Press (Ashland, MA; printed in Japan); one of 500 copies designed and edited by Cid Corman; printed rectos only on folded sheets; blue paste-paper wrappers, stab-stitched Japanese style, with a paper label on the upper cover. True first; Snyder's first book, printed in Japan.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Origin Press (Ashland, MA; printed in Japan); one of 500 copies designed and edited by Cid Corman; printed rectos only on folded sheets; blue paste-paper wrappers, stab-stitched Japanese style, with a paper label on the upper cover
- Publisher imprint reads Origin Press
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Gary Snyder |
| Publisher | Origin Press |
| Year | 1959 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Origin Press (Ashland, MA; printed in Japan); one of 500 copies designed and edited by… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
Origin Press (Ashland, MA; printed in Japan); one of 500 copies designed and edited by Cid Corman; printed rectos only on folded sheets; blue paste-paper wrappers, stab-stitched Japanese style, with a paper label on the upper cover.

## Is this the true first?
True first; Snyder's first book, printed in Japan. Very scarce.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book club edition; the later 'Riprap and Cold Mountain Poems' (Four Seasons Foundation, 1965) is an enlarged reissue, not the first appearance.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Riprap* by Gary Snyder a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/riprap
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-03.